Camille Roqueplan
1803–1855 · French Romantic painter of landscapes, genre and historical scenes
Camille Roqueplan (Mallemort, 1802 or 1803 – Paris, 1855) was a French Romantic painter of landscapes, genre scenes and historical subjects. His significance lies in bridging Romantic landscape painting and the depiction of rural life.
As a young man he showed talent for drawing, but he hesitated to make painting his profession. He tried medicine and a clerk's post at the Ministry of Finance, though neither lasted long. After training with Abel de Pujol and Antoine-Jean Gros, he competed for the Prix de Rome and then set out on his own, focusing on the landscapes of the Dauphiné. He first exhibited at the Salon of 1822 and won a gold medal there.
In the 1830s he painted historical scenes inspired by Walter Scott's novels and in 1841 he decorated the library ceiling of the Palais du Luxembourg. From 1843 he returned to landscape and, for health reasons, lived for several years in the Pyrenees, where he depicted peasant life. He taught at the École des Beaux-Arts, and his students included Prosper Marilhat and Constant Troyon.
Works (2)
Roqueplan imagines Anthony van Dyck seated at a dinner table in London, with musicians about to perform. An easel in the background suggests that the scene takes place in the painter's studio. Van Dyck enjoyed great success in England and became court painter to Charles I. The work reflects the Romantic taste of the first half of the nineteenth century and was shown at the Salon of 1838 in Paris.
Where to see the work
- Wallace Collection London · 1
- Musée des Beaux-Arts de la ville de Paris Paris · 1
Teachers and pupils
Studied with
- Antoine-Jean Gros 1771–1835
- Abel de Pujol 1785–1861
Pupils
- Prosper Marilhat 1811–1847